This mechanical monstrosity is based on Halo 5 concept art for forerunner units. Since the concept art for this met a developmental dead end, and the inevitable cutting room floor, this build is a bit of fun on my part.

The Forerunner Sky Serpents were a type of construct among the ranks of the stratosentinels. Equipped with a unique type of Sentinel Beam, these constructs were built for the forerunner equivalent of Scorched-Earth Protocol. These machines would fire their beam weapons directly into the ground, reducing it (and anything unfortunate enough to be in the way) into glass as they pass overhead. If anything was too far out of the way for the primary beam weapon to hit, the two orange globes to the sides of the machine's neck are Z-8250 Light Artillery cannons that make short work of even the strongest tank armor. For aerial defence, or an additional barrage, the circles on the machine's back are launch tubes for Pulse Missiles. Despite this construct's size, it is scarily agile, and can also reach supersonic speeds at moderately high altitudes.

Controls: (Also in Craft Instructions)

Pitch: Adjust Gyroscopic Pitch, Vertical Aim

Roll: Steer Left/Right, Aim Left/Right

Yaw: Gyroscopic Yaw (use this as a way to turn on the spot when hovering, fine adjustments when aiming, or just a little boost to turns)

VTOL: Impulse Drive Direction/Power

Trim: Adjust Altitude (also adjusts Auto-Hover Altitude)

Throttle: Impulse Boost (will affect manual lift engines, turning thrusters, and main propulsion drive)

AG1: Toggle Draconic Sentinel Beam (you might want to manually select the weapon in the menu due to the brief charge time)

AG2: Toggle Pulse Missiles

FireGuns: Fire Secondary Blasters

Additional Notes:

• The eyes of this construct appear to follow your camera, even when paused.....creepy.

• When in first person view, the Sky Serpent's head and secondary blasters will lock to the neck segment they are mounted to.

• When in first person view, a HUD will display the current weapon, among other things.

• When firing the Draconic Sentinel Beam, the Sky Serpent's battle mask and mouth will open.

• Selecting the Draconic Sentinel Beam, but not enabling AG1 will cause the Sky Serpent to open its battle mask and scream at its target.

• Reverse thrusters will fire as long as the Sky Serpent is turning. (Use 50% forward thrust to compensate for this)

• This construct can go supersonic at altitudes greater than 15,000 feet (4,572 meters) above sea level.

• The body segments have collisions, and can freak out if the machine is hit or if it maneuvers too much under water.

Weapons Loadout:

• Z-8250 Light Artillery: The two orange globes on the neck segment are these hardlight artillery emitters. Although normally used in an anti-air role, these are equally devastating to ground targets. They will follow the main weapon's aim in both first and third person camera views and are active at all times.

• Draconic Sentinel Beam: High energy particle emitter that destabilizes the molecular structure of the target, with explosive results. Unlike standard Sentinel Beams, this emitter fires slower projectiles akin to a stream of fire or plasma. Due to the weapon's placement, the name is fitting. This weapon has 100,000 rounds, but will display with 0 ammo due to the 0.5 second charging time.

• Pulse Missile: Energy based projectile with enhanced flight characteristics. Creates a slipspace detonation on impact. Maximum of 54 projectiles total. Needs line of sight for guidance. Can change targets mid-flight.

• Pulsar Flares: Deployable countermeasure array. Scrambles guidance systems of enemy munitions by channeling slipspace micro-ruptures through the charged hardlight casing. Due to the volatile nature of the device, the smartmatter structure quickly burns away, ionizing atmospheric gases as it travels.